The joys of travel

It's just as well, really, that I'm feeling so much better than this time last year... Having had an exhausting time in Singapore, where the heat and humidity was very draining, I caught a flight at 03.00 to Dubai, followed by another one, 80 minutes later, home.

Now, Singapore Changi Airport is usually a good place to spend some time, especially important when taking a flight at such an antisocial hour. Lots of things to do there - shops, free internet connections and so on. Except on early Friday morning, it seems. All the free internet connections were dead and the shops closed at around 1 am, just as I arrived. A good start to a long journey...

It got better. Having gone through security clearance (again!), I made the connecting flight. The man across the aisle from me had a disgusting cold and had clearly never heard that 'coughs and sneezes spread diseases', so didn't bother to cover his mouth when he sneezed, which he did regularly and hugely throughout the flight.

On arrival, I stood at the baggage carousel and waited. And waited. And waited. Yes, they lost my luggage. All of it. Not only that, but they managed to lose luggage belonging to everyone who was on the same set of connecting flights as me. You can probably imagine the scene at the complaints desk! Around 30 furious people - how could you lose that many bags, especially when all they had to do was move them from Gate 21 (where we arrived in Dubai) to Gate 20 (where we left)? Don't tell me - the man on the complaints desk already has... "They can't just move them to the next flight. They have to go through the correct system."

They promise me that they have located my luggage and that it will arrive on today's flight, whereupon it will be delivered to me at home. It had better be. I am rapidly running out of clothes!

Last year, I wouldn't have been able to do the journey at all, let alone cope with lost bags. This year, however, things are different and I've already contacted my insurance company to find out what to do next, should the bags not reappear.

The one good thing to happen was that my incredibly kind neighbour was waiting for me in the Arrivals hall - she even called me to make sure all was well when I didn't come through with the rest of the group from Dubai... A BIG thank you to her - it can't have been any fun waiting and waiting and waiting, and she was remarkably composed when I finally arrived, luggageless and fuming!!